The things they carried ranged from two $40 cases of beads to a 30-pack of Budweiser. And for around a dozen Washington University students, the burden came with the added benefit of marching in the 2014 Soulard Mardi Gras parade Saturday morning.

Students filled Graham Chapel to see Laverne Cox deliver the keynote address for Trans* Awareness Week in one of the highest-turnout events Pride Alliance members say they have ever hosted. Cox, advocate and actress in “Orange is the New Black,” spoke about transgender issues as well as the intersectionality of her identities and how they have affected her life.

Fulfilled dreams of playing in the NCAA Division III playoffs again came combined with bitter cold and wind for the Washington University football team on Saturday afternoon in Franklin, Ind. Tied 10-10 late in the fourth quarter, the Bears looked to pull off another close win in a season full of them, this time against No. 20 Franklin College.

Senior Josh Aiken, Washington University’s 27th Rhodes scholar and its first in three years, said he has been in a daze since receiving the good news Saturday afternoon—early enough to celebrate with his friends and family in a frenzy before the news came out and the congratulations poured in.

Basketball stars Kevin Love, Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Aldridge and Washington University sophomore Connie Zhou all either were raised in or currently reside in Lake Oswego, Ore., a suburb of Portland. All were also featured in this past week’s issue of Sports Illustrated magazine, the NBA preview issue. Zhou is not an NBA player, but a golfer.

While raising awareness and money to fight breast cancer, the No. 9 Washington University women’s volleyball won two matches and lost one in the WU Invitational Friday and Saturday. The University hosted its second annual Dig for Pink event on Friday, raising over $1,500, and the Bears defeated the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in straight sets.